老年抑郁个体注意偏向的发生阶段

本研究以老年抑郁量表、自评抑郁量表和汉密顿抑郁量表为工具筛选出老年抑郁个体和老年正常对照组为研究对象,通过空间线索化范式,以及分离的情绪Stroop范式考察了刺激呈现时间、线索呈现条件对老年抑郁个体注意偏向的影响,并探讨了老年抑郁个体注意偏向的发生阶段。研究结果表明：（1）在空间线索任务中,当刺激呈现时间为250ms或500ms时,老年抑郁组与老年正常组的返回抑制效应在各种情绪刺激下均无显著差异（P>0.05）,即老年抑郁个体没有呈现出对任何情绪刺激类型的注意偏向现象;当刺激呈现时间为750ms或1000ms时,老年抑郁组的返回抑制效应在不同情绪刺激条件下差异显著,F(2, 66)=3.22,P=0.046,而老年正常组则不存在返回抑制效应在情绪刺激类型上的差异（P>0.05）,提示老年抑郁组对不同情绪类型的刺激注意返回抑制能力不同;进一步检验得知：返回抑制效应在悲伤条件下,存在组间差异,分别是F(1, 33)=10.03,P=0.003;F(1, 33)=18.21,P=0.000,即老年抑郁组的返回抑制效应弱于老年正常组。（2）在Stroop实验中,老年抑郁组在单中性、双中性与单悲伤面孔、中性悲伤面孔、双悲伤面孔线索类型下的反应时差异显著;且当线索类型为单悲伤面孔、中性悲伤面孔、双悲伤面孔时,老年抑郁组与老年正常组的反应时差异均显著,即老年抑郁组的反应时明显长于老年正常组,F(1, 41) = 5.37,P=0.026;F(1, 41) = 7.08,P=0.011;F(1, 41) = 7.28,P=0.010;而当线索类型为单中性和双中性面孔时,老年抑郁组与老年正常组的反应时差异不显著（P>0.05）;提示抑郁组可能在自动化注意选择分配期存在注意偏向。研究认为,老年抑郁个体的注意偏向可能发生在注意初始分配阶段和解释阶段,且受加工深度的影响。在刺激呈现时间较长的条件下,注意偏向的效应更明显。     

Effects of attentional focus on movement coordination complexity

Attentional focus affects performance and learning of motor tasks. An external attentional focus (on the effects of movement) can lead to more efficient and effective movements compared to an internal focus (on body movement itself). According to the “constrained action hypothesis”, an external focus facilitates fast and reflexive movement control while an internal focus leads to disruption of automatic coordination processes. Such disruption should be apparent in the complexity of movement. In this study, multiscale entropy measures were used to investigate if the external focus is related to superior coordination complexity compared to internal focus. Twenty participants were divided in two groups that balanced over an unstable platform in fourteen trials over two days, either with internal or external focus of attention instructions, followed by seven retention trials on the third day. Multiscale entropy measures were used to quantify complexity of motions of the platform, the participant, and the composite of participant and platform motions. Results were contrary to expectations. For the external focus group, despite better overall performance, multiscale entropy values of participant and composite motions were lower in some scales compared to the internal focus group, especially in the first and last days. This may be consistent with previous findings that predictability increases during learning of a balance task. Results also indicate the need to identify the correct physiological interpretation of single or multiscale entropy measures. Further investigation is needed to establish if entropy differences are causally related to performance and learning advantages of the external focus.     

Temporal dynamics in attention bias: effects of sex differences,task timing parameters,and stimulus valence

New methods of calculating indices from the dot-probe task measure temporal dynamics in attention bias or fluctuations in attention bias towards and away from emotional stimuli over time. However, it is unclear how task-specific parameters such as stimulus valence and stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) as well as participant sex affect temporal dynamics in attention bias. To address this, male and female participants (N?=?106) completed either a fearful or happy face dot-probe task with four levels of SOA (84?ms, 168?ms, 336?ms, and 672?ms). Results suggest that temporal dynamics in attention bias are (1) greatest at the longest SOA, (2) greater in females, and (3) insensitive to stimulus valence. These findings indicate that participant sex and task timing, but not stimulus valence, are related to temporal dynamics in attention bias and should be considered in future studies utilizing this approach.     

Impact of a brief auditory attention training on a modified colour-word Stroop task in a high anxiety and worry sample

Poor attentional control leads to attentional biases that are implicated in psychological distress. Attention Training Technique (ATT) is an auditory intervention designed to strengthen attentional control. Research indicates that ATT alleviates anxiety and depressive symptoms. This study is a randomised control trial with repeated measures that tested if a lab-based, single-exposure of ATT strengthened attentional control. Forty-six nonclinical, high anxiety/worry participants received either ATT or a sham control intervention. Attentional control was assessed using the standard and a modified version of the colour-word Stroop task. The modified version incorporated tactile interference to increase perceptual load. A series of mixed effects models, simple contrasts, and z-tests were used to evaluate if cross-modal interference worsened, and whether ATT was beneficial to, attentional control. Tactile interference increased reaction times but, when Stroop interference was controlled for, this was only true on incongruent trials. The impact of ATT was greatest under high perceptual load.     

Examination of reactive motor responses to Achilles tendon vibrations during an inhibitory stepping reaction time task

Inhibition is known to influence balance, step initiation and gait control. A specific subcomponent of inhibition, the perceptual inhibition process, has been suggested to be specifically involved in the integration of proprioceptive information that is necessary for efficient postural responses. This study aimed to investigate the inhibition requirements of planning and executing a choice step initiation task in young adults following experimental perturbation of proprioceptive information using Achilles tendon vibrations. We developed an inhibitory stepping reaction time task in which participants had to step in response to visual arrows that manipulated specific perceptual or motor inhibition according to two proprioceptive configurations: without or with application of vibrations. Performance of twenty-eight participants (mean age 21 years) showed that Achilles tendon vibrations induced an increase in attentional demands (higher reaction time and longer motor responses). Further, this increase in attentional demands did not affect specifically the different inhibitory processes tested in this reactive stepping task. It suggests that attentional demands associated with the vibratory perturbation to postural control do not lead to a shift from automatic to more attentional inhibition processes, at least in young adults.     

Real‐World Correlates of Performance on Heuristics and Biases Tasks in a Community Sample

In the current study, we sought to examine whether performance on several heuristics and biases tasks and thinking dispositions was associated with real‐life correlates in a community sample of adults. We examined performance on five heuristics and biases tasks (ratio bias, belief bias in syllogistic reasoning, cognitive reflection, probabilistic and statistical reasoning, and rational temporal discounting), three thinking dispositions (actively open‐minded thinking, future orientation, and avoidance of superstitious thinking), and a questionnaire assessing real‐world correlates in several domains (substance use, driving behavior, financial behavior, gambling behavior, electronic media use, and secure computing). Our heuristics and biases tasks and thinking disposition measures were modestly associated with several real‐world outcomes, including the domains of secure computing, financial behaviors, and the total scores. That is, better performance on the heuristics and biases measures was associated with fewer negative outcomes. We found that the associations were generally higher in males than in females. Heuristics and biases performance and thinking dispositions were unique predictors of real‐world outcomes after statistically controlling for educational attainment and sex differences. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The self-attribution bias and paranormal beliefs

The present study investigated the relation between paranormal beliefs, illusory control and the self-attribution bias, i.e., the motivated tendency to attribute positive outcomes to oneself while negative outcomes are externalized. Visitors of a psychic fair played a card guessing game and indicated their perceived control over randomly selected cards as a function of the congruency and valence of the card. A stronger self-attribution bias was observed for paranormal believers compared to skeptics and this bias was specifically related to traditional religious beliefs and belief in superstition. No relation between paranormal beliefs and illusory control was found. Self-report measures indicated that paranormal beliefs were associated to being raised in a spiritual family and to anomalous experiences during childhood. Thereby this study suggests that paranormal beliefs are related to specific cognitive biases that in turn are shaped by socio-cultural factors.     

Linking attentional control and PTSD symptom severity: the role of rumination

Although deficits in attentional control have been linked to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the mechanism that may account for this association has not been fully elucidated. The present study examined rumination as a mediator of the relationship between attentional control and PTSD symptoms. Veterans with PTSD and trauma-exposed veterans without PTSD completed measures of attentional control, rumination, and PTSD symptom severity. As predicted, the findings showed that veterans with PTSD reported significantly lower levels of attentional control than veterans without PTSD. Veterans with PTSD also reported significantly higher levels of rumination than veterans without PTSD. Subsequent analysis of the total sample revealed that the relationship between attentional control and PTSD symptom severity was accounted for by excessive rumination. Attentional control may contribute to PTSD symptoms through excessive rumination. Attentional control and rumination may be important targets for PTSD interventions.     

Attentional bias for body and food in eating disorders: increased distraction, speeded detection, or both?

Previous research suggests that eating disorder patients show an attentional bias for body- and food-related information. However, so far little is known about the mechanisms that underlie the attentional favoring of this particular information in eating disorder patients. In the present study, we used both a body and a food visual search task to study speeded detection and increased distraction in eating disorder patients (n=67) and healthy controls (n=60). Compared with controls, eating disorder patients showed evidence of speeded detection of body-related information, and increased distraction by food information. These results suggest that the mechanism underlying the biased attentional allocation of eating disorder patients varies, and is dependent upon the type of information they are presented with.